The nine contenders for the best picture Oscar

LOS ANGELES: From a whimsical Hollywood musical to a lyrical, coming-of-age tale about a black man growing up in Miami and a blood-soaked war movie, the contenders for best picture at this year´s Oscars offer an array of stories.

The blockbuster stars Ryan Gosling as a struggling jazz musician and Emma Stone as an aspiring actress. It tracks the couple´s romantic and professional ups and downs against the backdrop of a dreamy, technicolor Los Angeles.

The movie is currently the favorite for the coveted Best Picture award. It is expected to win in several other categories, including best original song, best director and best score. Stone and Gosling are also nominated.

Barry Jenkins´s poetic drama "Moonlight" is a sweeping tale of human self-discovery that covers three chapters in a young black man´s life in Miami.

Based on the play "In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue," the film racked up eight nominations including for Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris in the supporting actor categories, writing, directing and cinematography.

Garth Davis´s moving real-life drama "Lion" tells the extraordinary true story of a boy called Saroo who gets lost at a railway station in India, is adopted by a couple in Tasmania -- and then heads home two decades later to find his long-lost family.

The movie has earned six Oscar nominations, including two for best supporting actors -- Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman -- and for best adapted screenplay and cinematography.

Mel Gibson´s searing World War II drama "Hacksaw Ridge" marks the filmmaker´s return into Hollywood´s good graces after a decade in the wilderness over accusations of anti-Semitism and homophobic slurs.

The film, which has received six Oscar nods, tells the true story of Desmond Doss, played by Andrew Garfield, who enlists and is determined to save lives on the frontline, but refuses to carry a gun on moral grounds.

"I was very disappointed, because she is the soul of the movie. She was my biggest ally. She gave everything, she gave a tremendous, very complex performance," Villeneuve, 49, told AFP at the Producers Guild Awards in January.